West Chester vs SUNY Cortland; SUNY Brockport
Meet Details: Saturday, February 1 I 1 P.M.
Location: Gym 6 Sturzebecker Health Science Center (West Chester, Pa.)
Coverage Links: Live Results I Video
WCU Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE
Cortland Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE
Brockport Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE
Last Time Out
West Chester concluded its season-opening month away from home on Saturday at Bridgeport in a quad meet with Bridgeport, fellow GEC member Cornell, and Centenary, whom West Chester had just competed alongside the weekend prior. On Saturday night in Connecticut, West Chester posted a 191.050 to finish second in the quad meet, trailing only Cornell, who placed first with a 191.800. West Chester started its night with a 48.300 on the beam, led by a pair of 9.700’s from Caroline Cascadden (Ashburn, Va.) and Lily McFarland (Baltimore, Md.), which helped the duo finish in a tie for second. On the floor, West Chester scored a 48.800, led by an EmmaGrace Kelly (Bradenton, Fl.) victory with a career-high score of 9.825. Kelly was the first of four Golden Rams in the top five as Catherine Keener (Holly Springs, N.C.), Cascadden, and McFarland all finished in a tie for fifth with scores of 9.750. West Chester scored a 47.600 on the vault, led by a 9.575 by Rylee Harada (Runnemede, N.J.), which was good enough to finish in a tie for ninth individually. In its final rotation of the night, Jordan Coleman (Bowie, Md.) scored a 9.625 on bars to finish fourth and help West Chester wrap up its evening with an event score of 46.350 and its second-highest team total of the season.
Welcome Home!
Saturday is West Chester’s first and one of four home meets on the season after spending the first month of the year on the road, including visits to Texas and Louisiana in the middle of the month. Saturday is the first of two straight at home but after next Saturday’s meet vs Ursinus, West Chester will not be home again until March 7 vs Alaska.
Saturday’s meet is also Alumni Day for West Chester, and the team will also honor the life and legacy of alumna Meghan Brannon during Saturday’s meet, with memorial t-shirts being available for purchase at the meet.
We are Honored
McFarland was honored as the Gymnastics East Conference Specialist of the Week for week four earlier this week after a pair of excellent meets at Centenary on Monday afternoon and Bridgeport last Saturday evening.
Making a Name Among the Giants
West Chester University, which competes at the NCAA Division II level in all other school sports, has held its own against the mostly Division I institutions that make up the Gymnastics East Conference. The Golden Rams are a combined 18-4 in head-to-head competition against GEC schools in the regular season, and West Chester has taken third place in two of the first three GEC Championships (2022, 2023).
Scouting the Opposition
SUNY-Cortland (5-3)
SUNY-Cortland enters the weekend after a clean sweep of a quad meet at Utica on Sunday afternoon, which saw the Red Dragons score a 189.025 to place first against Utica, Ithaca, and Ursinus. Gianna Mirigliano turned in three top-10 finishes, including a victory on vault with a career-high 9.725, while finishing sixth on beam with a season-best 9.575 and ninth on the floor with a 9.600. Kathryn McSweeney was an event winner for Cortland on the bars with a 9.675, while Samantha Meadows led the team on the floor with a fourth-place finish and a score of 9.750.
SUNY-Brockport (3-0)
Off to a 3-0 start to the year, including dual meet victories over Ithaca, SUNY-Cortland, and most recently Rhode Island College, SUNY-Brockport enters Saturday looking to continue its upward trajectory as the calendar turns to February.
After scoring in the high 180s in each of its first two victories of the year, Brockport scored a season-high 192.925 against RIC last Sunday and needed all of these points to escape with a 192.925-192.125 victory over its guests. Against Rhode Island College, Brockport started the meet with a 48.075 on the vault, led by a pair of 9.775 scores from Kiara Hockman and Maren Eramo, before scoring a 47.225 on the bars, led by a 9.6 from Emma Brookins. On the beam, Brockport totaled a 48.600, led by a 9.775 from Amelia York and a pair of 9.725’s from Hockman and Brookins. Still, the Golden Eagles trailed their guests heading into the final rotation of the afternoon. On the floor, Brockport scored a 49.025 to earn the come-from-behind victory behind a 9.9 from Hockman, a 9.785 from Brookins, and a 9.825 from Cali Czarcinski. Hockman was a double-winner in this meet, winning both the vault and floor, while York won the beam to help lead the Golden Eagles.
